Many years ago, I had the good fortune to tour a manufacturing facility that had a fully implemented lean system. This was during a time when lean was new to most companies in the US. The plant that I visited had been set up by the Japanese arm of this company, apparently the Lean Management system had been transferred from the mother company. As I walked through the plant, I saw many examples of lean in action. I was amazed at the way product moved through the shop from one end of the building to the other. It was evident that one piece flow was fully integrated as I saw many examples of one operator performing 4 or 5 basic process steps in very simple cells..
Today, there are many companies that claim to manufacture in a “lean way”. Rearranging pieces of equipment so that material flows in a one piece flow is pretty straightforward. Conducting Kaizen events initially gets everybody excited and results in large, noticeable improvements. Management sees the improvements and supports the “new program”. More Kaizen events are conducted, and more improvements are seen. Everyone seems to be on board. Lean is mentioned in every major employee meeting as the way things are done around here.
After the initial success, many companies seem to struggle to sustain a Lean System. How can that be if lean is so simple? It is because the Lean Management system is never established. As a result, the culture never fully develops. Without a Lean Management system, teams that had a lot of support are now left to take care of their own area. Improvements become less and less frequent. Because the “water has been lowered” from the previous Kaizen events, the problems are very noticeable and everywhere. Long lists of improvement projects are identified, but they overwhelm the team resources. The operators become frustrated because they are now being held to certain production quotas based on time studies of the newly designed manufacturing cells. Many times, these numbers can’t be met because equipment issues arise that do not immediately get addressed, affecting quality and output.
So how does a company go about establishing a Lean Management System? Below, I have identified six principles that management must do to create a lasting and effective lean culture.
1. Management must be fully committed to the lean approach. This means that the old mass production mentality must be driven out. The management team together must go to the gemba every single day. It is only when the management team sees the issues for themselves that they can determine how best to support the manufacturing floor. Literally, management needs to “walk the talk”.
2. A Value Stream Manager position must be established for each major product line. The position must have a high level of authority and autonomy in order to assure success. The VSM has ultimate responsibility for the entire product line, starting with product development through the entire manufacturing process.
3. Respect and development of the production workers must be an ongoing effort. Most operators want to do a great job. They need to be trained in Lean Tools so that they understand how the production lines are intended to be run. It is a large mistake to not listen to their ideas and concerns. Beyond that, they are also a great resource on helping to create or refine documentation on a process.
4. A rapid response system must be in place so that supervisors, mechanics, and/or engineers can be called in as issues arise. The support staff must be given the resources it needs in order to take immediate actions or put in place appropriate countermeasures. Adding more support staff will increase overhead costs which becomes a reason why management often overlooks this necessity. But a lean system without the right level of support will never work and the team will be doomed to failure. Having a lead person dedicated to overseeing production in real time is the first line of defense in monitoring production and addressing any issues that arise.
5. The lean system must be set up in a visual way so that issues are readily apparent at all times and especially during gemba walks. Hourly, daily, or weekly metrics must be posted to track performance on output and quality. The work area should undergo 5S so that unneccesary equipment and materials are removed and the area appears clean and well organized. FIFO lanes must be established so that WIP levels are easy to monitor and it is always obvious when there is too much or too little inventory.
6. A continuous improvement system must be established and maintained. The entire team must take responsibility to assure that improvement ideas that have been identified are followed through. Management must recognize that most of these ideas are worth pursuing, and well worth the time and financial resources that will be required. Since the operators are the people who are closest to the gemba and know the products and equipment better than anyone else, they need to be involved in daily Kaizen activities. Many of the smaller improvements can also be handled at that level, which will help to spread the resources needed and will give them a sense of accomplishment.
Over time, the Lean Management system will become natural and will change the mindset within the company. The culture that is so desired by many companies wanting to be “lean” will be realized. It will take on a life of it’s own that will allow management to steer and guide, refining as necessary and building towards a more complete approach. It will truly become a never ending continuous journey and not just a new system that was tried but only lasted for a while and quietly faded away.
As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Are there other principles that you would include as essential to an effective Lean Management System?
0 comments:
Post a Comment